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Military Spouses

MILITARY SPOUSES
By,Paige Swiney & Col. Steve Arrington
PREFACE

A search was made on the internet for Paige Swiney and this article was found on at least fifteen sites. I think it can safely be said that it is in the public domain and Jack's Joint shall contribute to its perpetuity.

Jack's Joint received the following email on February 24, 2005 - I am posting it at the beginning of this essay for all to see.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm Paige Swiney. I found my story on your website. Thanks for spreading it - I think it's a great tribute to military wives. You're free to share the story whenever and wherever you like.

Could you do two things for me?

1) The story you printed is only half mine. The first part of the story about the Commissary guy is mine. Col. Steve Arrington wrote the second part of that story. His portion begins at "Over the years, I've talked a lot about military spouses..." Could you credit him for that portion of the story?I've never met Col. Arrington, but our stories were used together in the syndicated Chicken Soup column, which is published in papers all over the US.

2) The story is being published in the newest of the Chicken Soup books, Chicken Soup for the Military Wife's Soul, which is due out April 26th. I wonder if you could make some comment on your site regarding the book--something with regard to the fact that there are many more stories like this available in the book.

In all honesty, I am not being paid for any publicity regarding this new Chicken Soup book. I just think it's a wonderful tribute to military wives, and I think that tribute is very small when compared to the sacrifice they give to be married to military men. For that reason, I believe attaching something about the book is important. It's your decision, in the end, how you treat this request.

Paige Swiney

MILITARY SPOUSES

By Paige Swiney & Col. Steve Arrington

It was just another harried Wednesday afternoon trip to the commissary. My husband was off teaching young men to fly. My daughters were going about their daily activities knowing I would return to them at the appointed time, bearing, among other things, their favorite fruit snacks, frozen pizza, and all the little extras that never had to be written down on a grocery list.

My grocery list, by the way, was in my 16-month-old daughter's mouth, and I was lamenting the fact that the next four aisles of needed items would pass by while extracting the last of my list from my daughter’s mouth, when I nearly ran over an old man. This man clearly had no appreciation for the fact that I had 45 minutes left to finish the grocery shopping, pick up my 4-year old from tumbling class, and get to school where my 12-year-old and her car pool mates would be waiting.

I knew men didn't belong in a commissary, and this old guy was no exception. He stood in front of the soap selection staring blankly, as if he'd never had to choose a bar of soap in his life. I was ready to bark an order at him when l realized there was a tear on his face. Instantly, this grocery isle roadblock transformed into a human. "Can I help you find something?" I asked.

He hesitated, and then told me he was looking for soap.

"Anyone in particular?" I continued.

"Well, I'm trying to find my wife's brand of soap."

I started to loan him my cell phone to call her when he said, "She died a year ago, and I just want to smell her again."

Chills ran down my spine. I don't think the 22,000-pound Mother of all Bombs could have had the same impact. As tears welled up in my eyes, my half-eaten grocery list didn't seem so important. Neither did fruit snacks or frozen pizza. I spent the remainder of my time in the commissary that day listening to a man tell the story of how important his wife was to him -- how she took care of their children while he served our country. A retired, decorated World War II pilot who flew over 50 missions to protect Americans still needed the protection of a woman who served him at home.

My life was forever changed that day. Every time my husband works too late or leaves before the crack of dawn, I try to remember the sense of importance I felt that day in the commissary. Sometimes the monotony of laundry, housecleaning, grocery shopping, and taxi driving leaves military wives feeling emptythe kind of emptiness that is rarely fulfilled when our husbands come home and don't want to or can't talk about work. We need to be reminded, at times; of the important role we fill for our family and for our country.

Colonel Arrington's portion of this essay begins here: Over the years, I've talked a lot about military spouses -- how special they are and the price they pay for freedom, too. The funny thing is, most military spouses don't consider themselves different from other spouses. They do what they have to do, bound together not by blood or merely friendship, but with a shared spirit whose origin is in the very essence of what love truly is.

Is there truly a difference? I think there is. You have to decide for yourself. Other spouses get married and look forward to building equity in a home and putting down family roots. Military spouses get married and know they'll live in base housing or rent, and their roots must be short so they can be transplanted frequently. Other spouses decorate a home with flair and personality that will last a lifetime. Military spouses decorate a home with flare tempered with the knowledge that no two base houses have the same size windows or same size rooms. Curtains have to be flexible and multiple sets are a plus. Furniture must fit like puzzle pieces.

Other spouses have living rooms that are immaculate and seldom used. Military spouses have immaculate living room/dining room combos. The coffee table got a scratch or two moving from Germany, but it still looks pretty good. Other spouses say good-bye to their spouse for a business trip and know they won't see them for a week. They are lonely, but can survive. Military spouses say good-bye to their deploying spouse and know they won't see them for months, or for a remote, a year. They are lonely, but will survive.

Other spouses, when a washer hose blows off, call Maytag and then write a check out for having the hose reconnected. Military spouses will cut the water off and fix it themselves. Other spouses get used to saying "hello" to friends they see all the time. Military spouses get used to saying "good-bye" to friends made the last two years. Other spouses worry about whether their child will be class president next year. Military spouses worry about whether their child will be accepted in yet another school next year and whether that school will be the worst in the city -- again.

Other spouses can count on spouse participation in special events: birthdays, anniversaries, concerts, football games, graduation, and even the birth of a child. Military spouses only count on each other, because they realize that the flag has to come first if freedom is to survive. It has to be that way. Other spouses put up yellow ribbons when the troops are imperiled across the globe and take them down when the troops come home. Military spouses wear yellow ribbons around their hearts and they never go away. Other spouses worry about being late for mom's Thanksgiving dinner. Military spouses worry about getting back from Japan in time for dad's funeral.

The television program showing an elderly lady putting a card down in front of a long, black wall that has names on it touches other spouses. The card simply says, "Happy Birthday, Sweetheart. You would have been sixty today." A military spouse is the lady with the card, and the wall is the Vietnam Memorial. I would never say military spouses are better than other spouses are. But I will say there is a difference. I will say, without hesitation, that military spouses pay just as high a price for freedom as do their active duty husbands and wives. Perhaps the price they pay is even higher. Dying in service to our country isn't nearly as hard as loving someone who has died in service to our country, and having to live without them.

Well said Top. My wife's father was Air Force and he served 2 tours flying in Viet Nam. His career was for 20 years and she remembers moving every couple of years. Her Mother was a saint and raised a beutiful young lady who I'm proud to say I married. So yes military spouses are definetly special.
Semper Fi

A search was made on the internet for Paige Swiney and this article was found on at least fifteen sites. I think it can safely be said that it is in the public domain and Jack's Joint shall contribute to its perpetuity.

Jack's Joint received the following email on February 24, 2005 - I am posting it at the beginning of this essay for all to see.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I'm Paige Swiney. I found my story on your website. Thanks for spreading it - I think it's a great tribute to military wives. You're free to share the story whenever and wherever you like.

Could you do two things for me?

1) The story you printed is only half mine. The first part of the story about the Commissary guy is mine. Col. Steve Arrington wrote the second part of that story. His portion begins at "Over the years, I've talked a lot about military spouses..." Could you credit him for that portion of the story?I've never met Col. Arrington, but our stories were used together in the syndicated Chicken Soup column, which is published in papers all over the US.

2) The story is being published in the newest of the Chicken Soup books, Chicken Soup for the Military Wife's Soul, which is due out April 26th. I wonder if you could make some comment on your site regarding the book--something with regard to the fact that there are many more stories like this available in the book.

In all honesty, I am not being paid for any publicity regarding this new Chicken Soup book. I just think it's a wonderful tribute to military wives, and I think that tribute is very small when compared to the sacrifice they give to be married to military men. For that reason, I believe attaching something about the book is important. It's your decision, in the end, how you treat this request.

Paige Swiney

MILITARY SPOUSES

By Paige Swiney & Col. Steve Arrington

It was just another harried Wednesday afternoon trip to the commissary. My husband was off teaching young men to fly. My daughters were going about their daily activities knowing I would return to them at the appointed time, bearing, among other things, their favorite fruit snacks, frozen pizza, and all the little extras that never had to be written down on a grocery list.

My grocery list, by the way, was in my 16-month-old daughter's mouth, and I was lamenting the fact that the next four aisles of needed items would pass by while extracting the last of my list from my daughter’s mouth, when I nearly ran over an old man. This man clearly had no appreciation for the fact that I had 45 minutes left to finish the grocery shopping, pick up my 4-year old from tumbling class, and get to school where my 12-year-old and her car pool mates would be waiting.

I knew men didn't belong in a commissary, and this old guy was no exception. He stood in front of the soap selection staring blankly, as if he'd never had to choose a bar of soap in his life. I was ready to bark an order at him when l realized there was a tear on his face. Instantly, this grocery isle roadblock transformed into a human. "Can I help you find something?" I asked.

He hesitated, and then told me he was looking for soap.

"Anyone in particular?" I continued.

"Well, I'm trying to find my wife's brand of soap."

I started to loan him my cell phone to call her when he said, "She died a year ago, and I just want to smell her again."

Chills ran down my spine. I don't think the 22,000-pound Mother of all Bombs could have had the same impact. As tears welled up in my eyes, my half-eaten grocery list didn't seem so important. Neither did fruit snacks or frozen pizza. I spent the remainder of my time in the commissary that day listening to a man tell the story of how important his wife was to him -- how she took care of their children while he served our country. A retired, decorated World War II pilot who flew over 50 missions to protect Americans still needed the protection of a woman who served him at home.

My life was forever changed that day. Every time my husband works too late or leaves before the crack of dawn, I try to remember the sense of importance I felt that day in the commissary. Sometimes the monotony of laundry, housecleaning, grocery shopping, and taxi driving leaves military wives feeling emptythe kind of emptiness that is rarely fulfilled when our husbands come home and don't want to or can't talk about work. We need to be reminded, at times; of the important role we fill for our family and for our country.

Colonel Arrington's portion of this essay begins here: Over the years, I've talked a lot about military spouses -- how special they are and the price they pay for freedom, too. The funny thing is, most military spouses don't consider themselves different from other spouses. They do what they have to do, bound together not by blood or merely friendship, but with a shared spirit whose origin is in the very essence of what love truly is.

Is there truly a difference? I think there is. You have to decide for yourself. Other spouses get married and look forward to building equity in a home and putting down family roots. Military spouses get married and know they'll live in base housing or rent, and their roots must be short so they can be transplanted frequently. Other spouses decorate a home with flair and personality that will last a lifetime. Military spouses decorate a home with flare tempered with the knowledge that no two base houses have the same size windows or same size rooms. Curtains have to be flexible and multiple sets are a plus. Furniture must fit like puzzle pieces.

Other spouses have living rooms that are immaculate and seldom used. Military spouses have immaculate living room/dining room combos. The coffee table got a scratch or two moving from Germany, but it still looks pretty good. Other spouses say good-bye to their spouse for a business trip and know they won't see them for a week. They are lonely, but can survive. Military spouses say good-bye to their deploying spouse and know they won't see them for months, or for a remote, a year. They are lonely, but will survive.

Other spouses, when a washer hose blows off, call Maytag and then write a check out for having the hose reconnected. Military spouses will cut the water off and fix it themselves. Other spouses get used to saying "hello" to friends they see all the time. Military spouses get used to saying "good-bye" to friends made the last two years. Other spouses worry about whether their child will be class president next year. Military spouses worry about whether their child will be accepted in yet another school next year and whether that school will be the worst in the city -- again.

Other spouses can count on spouse participation in special events: birthdays, anniversaries, concerts, football games, graduation, and even the birth of a child. Military spouses only count on each other, because they realize that the flag has to come first if freedom is to survive. It has to be that way. Other spouses put up yellow ribbons when the troops are imperiled across the globe and take them down when the troops come home. Military spouses wear yellow ribbons around their hearts and they never go away. Other spouses worry about being late for mom's Thanksgiving dinner. Military spouses worry about getting back from Japan in time for dad's funeral.

The television program showing an elderly lady putting a card down in front of a long, black wall that has names on it touches other spouses. The card simply says, "Happy Birthday, Sweetheart. You would have been sixty today." A military spouse is the lady with the card, and the wall is the Vietnam Memorial. I would never say military spouses are better than other spouses are. But I will say there is a difference. I will say, without hesitation, that military spouses pay just as high a price for freedom as do their active duty husbands and wives. Perhaps the price they pay is even higher. Dying in service to our country isn't nearly as hard as loving someone who has died in service to our country, and having to live without them.

Ellie being a Marines wife for 39 years now, I never looked at things this way until I read this, I thank you very much,I have always stood by my man, through everything, but this brought tears to my eyes,my name is Purplerose( Rose) I am the spouse of Sgt Jim.